B1: Junction Room

A short corridor leads from the stairs into this dead-end circular room, whose walls are painted with distraught weeping faces. In the centre of the room is a very thick pillar, actually the continuation of the central pillar from the floor below. Around it is a stone collar with great carved wing-like protrusions that can be pushed to rotate it. Pushing this collar rotates the entire inner wall of the circular chamber, moving the arch to expose one of four passages.

Three of the passages are open, but the one leading towards room B8 is blocked by a granite slab. The slab is set with six quartz discs showing the symbols of the pyramid’s secret order (pendant, book, crown, river, dagger, jewel). An inscription reads: “You who would disturb our king: undo what was done, or despair!”

B2–B7: Symbol Rooms

In the centre of each of these rooms is a very large raised stone block marked with a symbol (respectively: book, jewel, crown, river, dagger, pendant). Each individual room is lit by a heavy bronze chandelier whose lamps burn with a magical flame. Like the central chamber, the walls in these rooms are painted with crying faces.

The blocks can be pressed down by something heavy, causing the respective quartz disc on the granite slab to illuminate. Rotating the central room’s wall causes all of the blocks to reset.

Symbol Puzzle

If all six blocks are pressed in the correct order, the door to B8 will open as the granite slab sinks into the ground. The correct order is the reverse of the order on the previous floor.

If the blocks are pressed in the wrong order, something will happen after the sixth block has been pressed. All of the blocks will reset, and all light sources on the floor will extinguish themselves. A spirit is summoned in a random chamber, wriggling its way out of the wall. It takes the form of one of the crying faces depicted on that wall, and glides through the air accompanied by the sound of pitiful sobbing.

STR 3, DEX 10, WIL 20, 2 HP
Driven to spread despair and unhappiness
The spirit has a physical form like that of a mask and cannot pass through matter. It glows with a cold grey light and smells of dust and decay.
The spirit will not leave the pyramid for any reason.
The spirit can control the position of the circular wall at will.Gaze of grief: When the floating mask of the spirit approaches within 10ft, make a DEX save to avoid meeting its gaze. On a failure, lose d4 WIL and collapse sobbing to the floor as sadness overwhelms your mind.
The spirit will vanish after successfully inflicting its gaze attack on at least one person.

After the spirit vanishes (either of its own accord, or because it was vanquished), the floor’s light sources will come back on.

B8: Stairs Up

Once the slab has been bypassed, these stairs lead upwards to the inner tomb.

(click to embiggen)

C: Inner Tomb

An opulent burial chamber is painted with images of weeping citizens. In the centre of the room is a dais supporting a huge sarcophagus (C1) plated with gold and precious gems. At the rear wall, the large brick pillar continues upwards to terminate on this floor, forming a brick-patterned dais at the rear. On top of it is a large silver statue of the king (C2), holding aloft a book. Two large muscular statues armed with greatswords stand on either side of the chamber; these are of marble, but details are picked out in silver plate and semi-precious stones.

The undead king spends his time here, a red-and-gold light burning in his eyes. He can communicate with and direct his subjects by mental command thanks to the strange power that animates him. Large supplies of fresh food seem to have been delivered here, and there are even some half-eaten leftovers (apple cores, bread crusts, etc).

King Dolmar, beloved ruler
STR 16, DEX 11, WIL 18, 15 HP
Driven to rule his subjects wisely (but also driven to follow the orders of the magic upon him)Jewelled royal sword: d6 DamageArcanum: The bronze Crown of Fate is set with rich blue sapphire stones and gorgeous aquamarines. Its wearer can perceive a little of the future: when invoking its power, rewind game time by a few seconds (in combat, to your previous turn) and proceed as before. The first play through the rewound events was actually a prescient vision from the Crown. However, there is a catch: the Crown is intelligent and has a mysterious agenda of its own. Its visions are usually inaccurate in at least some respects; occasionally they are outright lies.

Hiding behind the sarcophagus (or possibly inside) is the red-clad adventurer William. At some point in his travels he has lost his left arm, although he fights well enough with the remaining one. William wishes to control the king into driving away or killing the characters, but the king will take any opportunity to subvert those orders and “accidentally” reveal William’s prescence to the party. If the tiara is knocked off, stolen, damaged, etc. then the king will be able to act freely: not being stupid, his top priority if this occurs will be to secure the tiara for himself or else destroy it outright. The other undead in the city remain his loyal subjects, and he will almost certainly mentally call for a contingent of the royal guard immediately.

William, Red-clad Adventurer
STR 9, DEX 10, WIL 18, 14 HP
Driven to bend others to serve himDagger: d6 DamageArcanum: The gridded dark iron panel on this ceramic bracer can emit a blazing fireball on command. It draws on its wearer’s energy, and extended use induces accelerated hunger. The fireball deals d10 Damage.Arcanum: This purple silk veil smells like jasmine. When worn, it blocks its wearer’s vision, rendering them blind to all but the ground underfoot. However, it also causes the wearer to be totally invisible to others.Arcanum: This silver tiara is set with a large fire opal that pulses with red and gold light. It has the power to raise the dead to unlife, but only one at a time. Those raised are compelled to follow the orders of the one who wears the tiara. Beings raised from the dead with this power often come back somehow wrong….

Cut out all the pyramid map pieces and stack them on top of each other for fun times! This piece serves as the final cap.

William Defeated

William possesses a scroll case containing the final page of the text regarding the Gadolim, having lost the other pages to banditry, ransom, or using them as bribes. He desires to find the king’s mystic jewel and harness its energy to summon and bind the Angel of Destruction described within. He was under the impression that the sacred pendant and book were here in the burial chamber, but daren’t leave to find the pendant’s true location for fear of the sobbing spirits of floor B, after almost succumbing to suicide during a confrontation with them earlier. He deliberately arranged for the royal guard to reset the traps and keys of the pyramid, to keep out intruders while he figured out his next step.

If the threat from William and the tiara have been neutralised, the king will probably resignedly admit that he and his subjects belong in the grave. Finding a way to undo the tiara’s magic is up to the players. Although the tiara normally only animates a single body, its magic was accidentally enhanced by the sacred geometry and sigils of the pyramid and brought the king’s subjects back also. They are not directly controlled by the tiara’s compulsion effect, and their fate is tied to the king: if the magic’s effect on the king can be broken (destroying him will qualify), all the other undead will collapse immediately.

I say that the seventh of the Gadolim is Everson, the Angel of Destruction. Suppose not that it is the least of its kind. In appearance it is like a sphere of burnished gold, from which gaze four sightless faces, and upon which are written the four Signs of Life. The whole sits unsupported amidst a vertical ring of obsidian. All about the Angel is the aroma of rich spices which no mortal man has ever been able to name.

Upon the inner surface of the obsidian ring are the thousand Eyes of the Angel which see every good and every evil act; but if ye would hide your intentions, be aware that the Angel cannot hear your words if ye are lying down idly.

When the wrath of the Angel is aroused, a web of deadly lightning leaps forth from it in all directions, seeking its foes no matter where they shelter.

For those who are complicit in wickedness, even those who lift not their own hand, the Angel of Destruction holds a special hatred. Note well that the aura of its presence shall overwhelm you if ye do not attempt to resist those who mean to carry out impure acts! For those who sit idly by while the wicked prosper, the presence of Everson brings a shrivelling, a withering, and a feebleness.

Know also this omen, O Sorcerer: at the advent of this Angel, objects shatter in a most violent manner, and mirrors break into a thousand pieces when mortals lay eyes upon them.

This account do I, Sphamina of Acadus, certify and commit unto the Library, this seventeenth day of Monital in the Year of Ascension 136.

Everson, Angel of Destruction
STR 20, DEX 20, WIL 20, 30 HP
Driven to smite the complicit.
Armour 1Lightning field: This sea of lethal crackling bolts spreads in every direction, curling around obstacles and through cracks. No cover short of a completely hermetic seal is sufficient to block it. The field spreads out 50ft from the Angel and deals d20 Damage which ignores armour.Shattering gaze: The gaze of the Angel can, if it so desires, rend objects utterly into pieces. This gaze has no such effect on creatures, however. A creature carrying or adjacent to an object targetted by the Angel’s gaze can choose to make a DEX save to obscure the item from view, averting its destruction.Power: The Angel knows whether the ultimate intended goal of any action is for good or ill. It will loudly denounce evil-intended acts in a deafening voice, laying bare secret plans to everyone.Limit: The Angel cannot hear anything said by someone who is sitting or lying idly.Aura: Within a 100ft radius, if anyone should witness a wicked person acting or prospering, and does not at least attempt to oppose the act, that observer is overcome by a fearsomely rapid wasting disease. They must make a STR save or else lose d6 STR and d6 DEX each turn as their body shrivels away. Another STR save can be attempted each turn to break the effect. The aura extends 100ft and lasts for a week after the Angel departs this plane.

Epilogue, and Unfinished Business

Placing the sacred pendant atop the statue’s book will open the way to the secret resting-place of the mystic jewel; the king won’t volunteer this information, but won’t prevent the characters from retrieving it either. The statue and the large central column atop which it rests will descend down through each floor of the pyramid, then continue down to a deep cavern under the earth. The column has no means of ascending again, so finding a way out of the caverns is up to the characters and their ingenuity. In ancient days, there was once a man who got lost in the deep caverns for weeks before he reappeared, tattered and babbling about strange wooden creatures: but that’s a story for another time.

While the characters have been out adventuring, there’s still the matter of the sage Ladan and his plans to harness the powers of the Angels. If the characters have made no attempt to dissuade him, perhaps they will return to the Silver Tower to find only a glassy crater. And let us not forget that he sent copies of his notes to other sages in the capital city itself. How far have their researches gone, and how many copies of the document have been scribed?

As to the mystic jewel which the characters can now obtain, who knows what strange powers it holds? Perhaps it is a link to their next adventure….

Closing Comments

Starting February 25 and running through March 3, the d20pfsrd store is have a “GM’s Day warmup sale“, with a bunch of player-oriented supplements on sale at 30% off. This ends when the GM’s Day sale starts and runs until March 11, focusing on GM-oriented supplements at 40% off.

All of the Echelon Reference Series PDFs released so far are on sale at 30% off during the warmup, but that ends March 4.

But not to worry! That’s when the sales start at DriveThruRPG (and RPGNow) and Paizo, so you’ve still got an opportunity to get the PDFs at a discount.

Echelon Reference Series: Sorcerers

New Release! March 2, 2015

And it starts off at a 30% discount at DriveThruRPG because I’d feel bad if someone paid full price only to have it go on sale two days later.

Entrance

The approach to the pyramid of Dolmar is flanked by two rows of inscribed obelisks, which I already described previously. The entrance itself is up a flight of steps, and is barred by enormous double stone doors. Pushing them open is easy thanks to a delicate counterweight, but doing so triggers a spear trap to spring up in the porch. A grid of holes is visible in the stone floor of the porch, through which the spears will emerge.

A1: Corridor

Along the corridor, the stone floor slabs are cracked and dented in one spot. Above, the ceiling tiles are interrupted by a single large block of granite. Stepping on the slab immediately before the cracked section triggers the falling-block trap after a second’s delay. The trap resets itself automatically.

Just before the entrance into the Scarab Chamber, the corridor is flanked by two pairs of muscular statues, each holding a greatsword upright. A gauzy veil in front of each pair of statues hides the tripwire which activates the trap, bringing the statues’ greatswords down violently on the hapless victim.

A2: Scarab Chamber

The Scarab Chamber is shaped like the beetle for which it is named. Rows of carved columns mark the edge lines of its carapace, with a very wide central column where the lines meet. This central column is of brick. Six side passages branch off like legs, leading to various side chambers. At the head end of the chamber is a great door, made from a single colossal block of granite rigged to a clever mechanism. Above the lintel of the doorway, a column of six circular sockets is edged in brass.

Once there was a king who had a wicked minister. The king possessed a magical jewel which held a great and secret power, and which he hid deep at the bottom of the earth. The passage to the hidden chamber he kept in a book, which could only be opened using the pendant of the king’s holy authority. But the wicked minister sought to seize the magical jewel for himself, and one night he crept into the king’s sleeping-chamber and stole the sacred pendant and the book. The king awoke and pursued the minister to the edge of the great river. There the wicked minister drew a dagger and made to slay the king, but the mighty king prevailed and threw the minister under the waters. The king stood on the shore and raised the book above his head in triumph, but it was found that the minister’s poisoned blade had struck a mortal blow. Before he succumbed to the sleep of death, the king made this decree: that the holy pendant be lifted up into the skies.

Here lies that king.

The door can be opened by placing the stone tokens in the correct order in the sockets (from the top: pendant, book, crown, river, dagger, jewel).

A3: Model Room

In the first side-room is a model of the city, carved from stone. The pyramid and the temple are clearly visible, as is a dry channel depicting the river.
If the river channel is filled with water, the pyramid model will split open to reveal a circular stone token marked with a river symbol.

A4: Astronomical Room

In the second room, a thin shaft brings a beam of bright sunlight inside, where it strikes a brass mirror on a turntable. The ceiling is decorated with images of the constellations, the moon, and the sun. The mirror is faded with the years, but with some polishing it will soon give a bright reflection again. The mirror is currently oriented to reflect the light towards the ceiling image of the moon. Pointing it at the sun instead will cause the turntable to rise up, revealing a cavity containing a stone token marked with a crown symbol.

A5: Choice Room

In the third room, the floor has several circular holes the approximate width of a human arm. Peering inside the hole, one can see a lever which can be pulled to activate something. On the floor around each hole are decorations. One hole is painted around with golden coins and jewels. Another is decorated with skulls, wicked blades, broken bones, and drops of blood. A third hole has images of idyllic scenery and relaxing figures. A fourth hole is surrounded by depictions of succulent fruit of every kind. The fifth hole depicts attractive couples fawning over each other and presenting gifts. The sixth and final hole shows crowns, sceptres, and thrones. Pulling the lever in the second hole (skulls, blood, etc) causes a pedestal to rise from the centre of the floor bearing a stone token with a dagger symbol. Activating any other hole will trigger spring-loaded blades inside the hole itself.

A6: Double Maze

The fourth room appears to contain a waist-high maze of low walls, at the other end of which is a chest. In fact, the walls are illusory and can be walked through. The real maze is composed of invisible walls (see map below), and these span from the ceiling to the floor. The chest, once opened, appears to be empty. Its contents are actually merely concealed by illusion: within is a stone token with a jewel symbol.

A7: Grandiose Room

The fifth room has a glorious throne decorated in gold and gems, two imposing muscular statues, grandiosely-carved walls, and inscriptions just above head height. The inscriptions are various prideful and self-congratulatory messages; see examples below.

Low down, partway along the base of one wall and cunningly integrated into the carvings, is a low entrance into room A7b. The entrance is easily missed if one is looking only at the inscriptions.

A7b: Humble Room

This plain undecorated chamber contains only a small plinth holding a stone token with the symbol of a pendant.

A8: Alphabet Room

The third room’s floor consists of a grid of tiles, each marked with a letter. On the wall are painted depictions of every kind of precious gem and piece of jewellery. If you spell the name of the king, Dolmar, by pressing firmly on the tiles, one of the gem pictures will swing open to reveal a stone token marked with a book symbol.

A9: Stairs up

Beyond the great door of the Scarab Chamber, a staircase curves upwards.

On the sands near the great river Daiphrit stands the imposing pyramid-tomb of the ancient king Dolmar, a beloved ruler of the kingdom who was killed by a villainous minister. The tomb’s construction took many years, and necessitated the existence of a temporary town to support all the labourers and artisans. After the tomb was completed, many of these people elected to stay in the town to be close to the resting-place of their king. Over time, others joined them, and the town grew into a small city. But, one by one, the king’s loyal subjects grew old and died, and were themselves buried in the city’s districts. In modern times, the city of Dolmar’s Rest lies silent and empty, home only to the dead.

But it is silent no longer. A strange corona of red and gold light surrounds the pyramid, and those loyal to the ancient king have woken from their graves. Slowly the skeletal citizens are rebuilding their ruined city, restoring it to its former glory. A few brave scouts have visited the city and returned unmolested, reporting the undead populace to be generally peaceful and industrious. But King Dolmar himself has returned, and the city recognises him alone as the rightful ruler of the entire kingdom.

Rumours are spreading through the capital like wildfire. Many expect this is some trick: the dead may indeed walk, but surely the good king Dolmar of legend would have no part in such necromancy? Others wonder if perhaps the old legends have been subject to whitewashing, or just suffer from a rose-tinted view of history. Alternatively, maybe the whole thing is just an illusion thrown up as cover for an invasion by the Blueskins.

The Queen and her advisers need hard information about what’s really going on. A team of courageous adventurers might be able to enter the city and collect intelligence to determine if there is an immediate threat, and to track down the source of this strange magic. That’s where the characters come in.

The citizens are skeletal in nature, with red-and-gold pinpoints of light burning in their eye-sockets. Generally, the populace is busy working day and night to rebuild the various structures and create new equipment to replace items worn down over the centuries. Despite their condition, the citizens still feel the need to eat, drink, and sleep, so much of the infrastructure of a normal city is needed. The outlying farms have, of course, gone to wilderness over the centuries, leading to some difficulty with food supplies. None of the citizens are completely comfortable to meet a living human; it’s an unpleasant reminder of their own undead status. They try to remain polite, however.

The citizens don’t know the source of their condition, or what the king’s long-term plans are, although plenty of the more egotistical ones will be happy to make assumptions or to pretend to know important secrets. The nobles are particularly prone to such theorising. King Dolmar hasn’t been seen since a single public appearance after the great awakening, preferring to keep himself shut up in the pyramid. Only the royal guard are allowed in, and then only by direct order. The priests manage the everyday aspects of authority in the meantime. The royal guard sometimes receive telepathic orders from the king, and many citizens have started to grow wary of them.

Drop a die on the below tables to generate random encounters. Each district has its own table (in outline shaped like the district itself), which you can combine to get a whole-city table. For entries marked with “[*]”, the encountered person is interacting with a third party: drop a die on the whole-city table to find out who!

The sacred pendant, symbol of the king’s authority, is a big topic of discussion amongst the skeletons. The king wasn’t wearing it at his public appearance, and its whereabouts are unknown. Some speculate that this is a sign the king is an imposter, while others wonder if it was stolen by tomb raiders during the city’s long sleep. The royal guard quash discussion of the subject if they should hear any.

The avenues leading to the temple and the pyramid are bordered by obelisks: both sets of obelisks are identical, six in number and inscribed with the following lines of text:

The high priestess prefers to stay in the temple. She knows the pendant was hidden in the temple by one of her predecessors, but doesn’t know exactly where. She has received a telepathic instruction from the king to deliver the pendant to the pyramid, but is unsure if he is the real king or not. If the delivery is to be made, having the artefact carried in the hands of armed adventurers might seem like a prudent move. The king’s instruction mentioned the pendant being “hidden in the heavens”, although since it was secured after his death he doesn’t know the specifics.

High Priestess Vernat
STR 7, DEX 7, WIL 17, 7 HP
Driven to maintain the sanctity of the templeStaff of office: An oaken staff with a holy symbol inlaid into one end in gold. Can be used as a weapon, dealing d6 Damage.Arcanum: This thin wand of rowan wood is tipped with a yellow citrine stone. Pointing it and uttering the command word “prism” causes it to emit a powerful beam of sunlight. This beam deals d6 Damage from intense heat, and also dazzles those who fail a DEX save to avert their eyes. The user will also be dazzled if they look towards the wand while activating it: but of course the user can avert their eyes without needing a save.
Like the other undead, Vernat is not especially vulnerable to sunlight, although the wand’s sunbeam can still dazzle her.

1: The main hall of the temple is engraved with inspirational scenes of heroism from throughout history.2: A small library provides a space for reading and reflection. A tapestry depicting the famed ancient sage Herol hangs here.3: These dormitories provide sleeping space for two priests each, plus a desk and trunk.4: The high priestess’ room includes her sleeping area and an imposing mahogany desk, hung on either side with intricate tapestries depicting the history of the temple.5: The main sanctuary is supported by graceful pillars and hung with rich silk curtains. The altar is a table atop a dais, covered with a fine silk cloth that almost reaches the ground.6: The priests’ dining area. The long table is flanked by two benches, with comfortable seats at both ends (these are for the high priestess and for any important guest).7: The kitchen and storage area includes a barrel of spelt beer, salted pork, a few cans of Anchor-brand canned sausages traded from visitors, and wild carrots and onions. A serviceable hearth provides the cooking area.

Sitting atop a dais, the altar of the temple is a table covered with a fine silk cloth that almost reaches the ground. On the floor underneath the altar, one of the floor tiles is marked with a miniature pendant symbol; it’s quite visible if kneeling in front of the altar. Pressing this tile causes the entire dais to swiftly rise up on a stone column, ascending into the interior of the temple spire. From here one can easily reach a stone casket on a ledge at the tip of the spire, within which glows the pure light of the sacred pendant.

This teardrop-shaped crystal pendant shines with a wondrous light that is said to be a tiny spark of divine essence. Its merest touch burns evil and undead beings, draining d8 STR. The pendant’s glorious light is continuous and cannot be suppressed save by keeping it under a heavy covering.

If the characters don’t go out of their way to conceal the pendant, news of its discovery will spread swiftly. Some of the populace will want it delivered to the pyramid immediately, while others think the king is an imposter and that it should be kept away. Some citizens may consider it borderline blasphemous for the characters to be carrying around the king’s symbol, particularly if they are wearing it. These high tensions are stoked by the fact that none of the skeletons can touch the holy pendant directly without being burned, so the various groups must try to convince the characters of the “correct” course of action.

If the royal guard hear the news, they will be instructed by the king to try and seize it from the adventurers. Those citizens who don’t trust the royal guard may help the characters escape or hide if needs be.

Previously, I mentioned the hook for this series of adventures: the sage Ladan hires the player characters to search the ruins of lost Acadus for ancient texts.

What I didn’t mention was that the characters are the second group Ladan hired for this purpose. You see, he had previously enlisted the services of Edward and William, two adventurers who successfully located the Hall of Sages.

Unfortunately, only William returned from the expedition, reporting that Edward had accidentally fallen to his doom shortly after they found a magical-looking tome. Ladan was upset to learn that Edward had been carrying the book when he fell into the chasm. Nevertheless, Edward received his due pay, and went off to deliver William’s share to his next-of-kin.

Now, Ladan has finished brooding over the matter and has decided to hire a new group of adventurers to examine the Hall of Sages again, more carefully. He hopes that perhaps the chasm was not as bottomless as it seemed and that the book can yet be found.

The directions to the Hall, left by Edward, are quite vague and consist of just a small number of landmarks. While the characters are wandering the ruins trying to find the correct place, use the die-drop table below to select random encounters.

Level AA1: Entrance hall. One of the oaken doors at the front is broken off and has fallen down the steps.

A2: Staircases down to B1.

A3: Office. On the desk lie a quill and inkpot, and various pieces of paperwork and bills in Cadian text. In a drawer can be found an iron lockbox, filled with ancient Cadian coins.

A4: This room has been demolished by a huge plant that has sprung up over the centuries. Make a WIL save or fall asleep if you inhale its soporific pollen.

A5: Main hall. The roof is mostly intact here, albeit with some holes. Pinewood pews still line the room, but those on the left have been pushed around by the plant from A4, which extends into this room. Some creeping vines are hiding in the pews and will attack at a moment of their choosing.

A6: Platform. Another large plant is growing here, but has yet to open its bud. A chest tucked at the back of the platform contains a set of linen robes and a bronze headdress set with emeralds. There are two statues: on the left is a male sage with empty hands outstretched: it looks like looters have wrested something from his grasp. The right-hand statue of a female sage is smothered by the large plant: if the vegetable matter can be hacked away, the crystal orb she holds can be obtained.

B2: Two statues of sagely demeanour are here, duplicating the ones upstairs. The roots from the plant in A4/A5 penetrate this room. There are several tapestries of the night sky around the room. A secret door to B5 is behind one of the tapestries. The door is carved with constellation symbols, and the tapestries give clues as to the correct order in which to press them. One tapestry (on the left side) has been mangled by the plant roots.

B3: Library. A scene of horrific devastation greets you in this room. Two great bookshelves have been knocked down by invading plant roots from A4/A5, scattering mouldering books all over the floor. Two more bookshelves are still standing, although the books are still quite decrepit.

B4: Balcony. Looming over a dark chasm, this balcony is edged with what was once a beautiful wooden railing, now grey with age. A dais supports a vacant lectern and two long-extinct candelabra. The railing is broken in one spot, with bloodstains and scorch marks leading up to this place.

Level C
C1: Chasm base. The loamy soil here supports a patch of pale subterranean flowers, as well as the roots of the plant from A6. The broken body of Edward is here amid crushed flowers and scattered petals, still lying where he fell from the railing. He has suffered some bad burns, and William’s red-hilted dagger is in his back. The body clutches tightly to its chest the binding of an ancient Cadian text: most of the pages are ripped out, but one remains.

C2: Dark pool. Caught between two rocks nestled in the sludge is somebody’s lost ring, gold with a small diamond.

C3: A bare limestone ledge, with a masonry archway leading to C4.

C4: Hall with stairs up to B5. It’s a long climb.

C5: Some sort of alchemy workshop, with a workbench full of glass equipment. One of the flowers from C1 is here, quite shrivelled after so many centuries. A chest holds some finished potions, probably fermented by now. A cabinet holds many jars of alchemical reagents, which are likely stale.

C6: Storage chamber. A chest holds some ancient salted pork, now more like leather. Another chest holds ten sets of linen robes which are in fairly good condition. In a crate are varied pieces of alchemical glassware and potion vials, carefully packed to prevent breakage.

The capital is clean and beautiful. Money flows in the markets, and comfortable housing lines the streets. It is a good place for a respectable person to be seen! Official palace statistics report that the poor are well-provided for, and numbers of homeless people living on the streets are lower than they have ever been. Many noble-sponsored charitable organisations exist to help the needy, with fanciful names such as The Guild of the Golden Cup, The Great Hand of Plenty, and The Porcelain Heart.

One of the homeless people in the city is David, who is known to one of the characters’ contacts. He has been visiting The Silvered Cloud‘s charitable hostel lately to get somewhere to sleep at night, in exchange for which he does some simple manual labour. The organisation’s leader is a well-known industrialist with a large canned food business, who makes weekly visits to the hostel in the Harbour Quarter to give encouraging speeches.

Nobody has seen David for the past week; the hostel state that he has “graduated from the programme”, but otherwise offer no information. Those who live on the lowest rungs of society can relate other stories of homeless people going missing, stretching back over several months. Shortly after the characters’ contact enlists their help in trying to locate David, the contact succumbs to a sudden and mysterious death in their own bedroom, having apparently just finished a dinner of canned sausage. The body is shrivelled and desiccated, the jaw is dislocated, and the vocal cords severed.

The Anchor Canned Goods factory in the Merchants’ Quarter is a busy place, with a complicated production line and a huge shipping department packing tins for distribution to all parts of the kingdom. Somehow the production line doesn’t seem quite big enough to produce cans at the rate they are shipped out. Their canned food is quite popular and the characters will have encountered it on shopping expeditions: especially the popular canned beans, beef, sausages, tomatoes, sardines, and strawberries.

A number of people, from all walks of life, have fallen prey to the same mysterious death that affected the character’s contact, but it is being kept under wraps by the authorities for fear of panic. In each case the condition of the body is the same, but there is rarely much sign of a struggle. Some of the victims died in locked rooms with nobody else present. Observation of the scenes will reveal that each had recently had a meal of delicious canned food.

Baroness Joanna, industrialist
STR 8, DEX 10, WIL 12, 6 HP
Driven to maximise production and profits.Arcanum: This many-coloured glass bangle allows its wearer to phase between the normal world and the spectral world. The transition causes dizziness and disorientation.Arcanum: This roughly-shaped but sparkling glass pendant allows the wearer to telekinetically deflect blows at the speed of thought, bestowing Armour 1 against physical weapons.Weapon: Dagger (d6 Damage)

In the hostel’s main office there towers a huge ornate glass clock, whose shimmering dial tracks some rhythm of unearthly origin. The ticking sound of the clock echoes strangely. A glass door on the front of the clock (which is an Arcanum) opens to reveal a passage to a spectral world adjoining the mundane one. Time flows differently here: a day in the spectral world passes in only an hour’s worth of mundane time. In the sandy ground of the spectral world, missing homeless people labour to dig new tunnels in the nest of the native phase insects; the tunnels are lined with multi-coloured glass by the insects themselves.

Also in the spectral world is an extension of the Baroness’ canning industry. Taking advantage of the different rates of temporal flow, she compels the homeless slaves to labour hard at the canning production line when they aren’t tending to the needs of the flitting phase insects, or catching a scant few hours’ sleep. The factory’s machinery is steel, of human make, but the structure itself is mostly the glittering glass excreted by the insects.

The phase insects themselves are two feet long and of beautiful aspect, with shimmering dragonfly wings and iridescent bodies. Their eyes sparkle with entrancing rainbow hues, and a faintly metallic scent accompanies them. They are habitually airborne, landing only to rest or lay eggs, and their wings emit a harmonious droning hum which is hypnotically pleasant to listen to. They prefer to congregate in large numbers and dislike being alone.

Slaves who dissent or become too weak to work are chained down and implanted with a phase insect egg. This egg grows to maturity very rapidly, draining the vitality and mass from the host’s body to leave a shrivelled ruin. At length, the juvenile insect forces its way up through the host’s throat, tearing the vocal cords and cracking open the jaw.

As part of her business arrangement with the phase insects, the Baroness has arranged for a certain number of eggs to be introduced into cans of food. Most of the insects which hatch in the normal world instinctively make their way to the glass clock to return to the nest, although some may seek out new nesting sites in the normal world. Mostly the deadly cans are included randomly in regular shipments, although the Baroness isn’t above ensuring that specific enemies receive such a “special” can.

Phase insect
STR 9, DEX 17, WIL 10, 3 HP
Driven to expand the nest.Brood telepathy: Phase insects are in constant telepathic contact with each other, forming a single mind which refers to itself as “I”. The brood can also make telepathic contact with humans. Their telepathy can barely penetrate the boundary between worlds, and then only near weak points such as the glass clock.Stinger: d6 Damage. On critical damage, the poison induces bizarre hallucinations.Ovipositor: An egg can be laid in the stomach of an immobilised or unconscious target. A merely sleeping creature will certainly be awakened when the ovipositor enters their throat, and must act fast to avoid infestation.Egg development: Once a creature is infested with an egg, they must make a STR save every minute. After each failed save, lose d6 STR as the larva consumes its host. At zero STR, the juvenile phase insect tears its way violently out of the victim’s throat, killing them. If three successful saves are made before this point, the body’s natural defences have succeeded in destroying the egg.Phase in/out: The insect can spend its turn changing phase to become ghostly and insubstantial. While phased out, it cannot interact with any physical matter save glass.

The immediate area around the factory and the nest is a sandy place filled only with the glass sculptures of the phase insects. Should the characters decide to explore further afield in the spectral world, feel free to get creative!

The Baroness has a safe place to hole up in the spectral world, a comfortable office in the slaves’ factory. Her secret records and anything else incriminating are kept here, along with a stash of other paperwork she would prefer to keep out of others’ reach. The spectral world office is in the same relative location as her office in the normal world’s factory, and hence her glass bangle allows her to move between them. Included in the document safe is a scroll case holding the sixth page of the Cadian document.

Take careful note of the Angel of Kindness, which is the sixth Angel Graciaon. For if ye are a goodly man, who treats his servants and apprentices well, ye shall be spared; but if ye treat any under you harshly, ye shall be pursued. The miser and the oppressor alike are hated greatly by this Angel; think not that such shall be shown any kindness or mercy!

In the presence of Graciaon must ye not speak or deal harshly with any, lest its anger be stirred up, and the dust of the ground become biting insects to envelop you. But take hope in that this Angel shall always accept apologies offered from the heart (and indeed know that it sees the truth of the heart).

Now I shall speak to you of the appearance of this Angel, which is that of an upright square of emerald whose point is downwards, and from each edge of which is a hand grasping a golden sceptre. In the midst of the square is the Eye of the Angel, which sees the truth of the heart, and all about this Angel is the smell of blood.

If any man is pointed at by a single sceptre of the Angel, his heart shall quail within him, and he shall fall under a shadow of despair. But a greater woe falls on those for whom the Angel points two sceptres, who shall tear their own bodies to pieces with supernatural strength. And indeed with a third sceptre a mortal shall lose his mind and take his broken body to the field to eat grass like a beast. And the last woe falls on he who offends the Angel greatly; for such shall receive the gesture of all four sceptres, and his mind and soul shall be torn utterly asunder, and the pieces thereof scattered on the four winds.

Let he who studies omens know this: when misers and harsh taskmasters quake with fear and can only rest their spirits by giving gifts to their servants, the terrible Angel of Kindness is surely close at hand.

Graciaon, Angel of Kindness
STR 20, DEX 20, WIL 20, 30 HP
Driven to obliterate the cruel.
Armour 1One sceptre: Make a WIL save or else lose d6 WIL from crushing despair.Two sceptres: Make a WIL save or else begin striking yourself madly, dealing d6 Damage each turn. A WIL save can be attempted each turn to break the effect.Three sceptres: Make a WIL save. On failure, lose d12 WIL as your mind shatters under the force of the Angel’s wrath.Four sceptres: Make a WIL save. On a failure, lose d20 WIL as every harsh word you ever spoke comes back to you with the violence of a thousand swords. At zero WIL, your mind and soul are shredded completely and your body falls lifeless to the ground.Power: The Angel knows the true emotions behind any statement or act.Limit: The Angel cannot refuse an apology offered honestly.Aura: When anybody speaks or acts harshly towards another in the Angel’s presence, swarms of biting insects spring up around that person (STR 3, DEX 18, WIL 3, 6 HP, driven to bite mammals). The aura extends for 100ft and lasts a week after the Angel departs this plane.

The coastal town of Cacheto-on-sea is a generally peaceful place with a long history of solid industry. The town’s salt mines have brought prosperity to the area, and many of the townspeople are quite well-off. Lately there have been strange happenings, however. A series of unusually aggressive diseases has struck randomly throughout the population — never the same disease twice, and never anything previously known to medicine. In the past few days there have also been one or two accounts of people going suddenly missing, all of them quite young and all of them completely healthy.

The diseases progress quickly and often fatally, so the town’s elderly priest is struggling to keep up with demand for his healing powers. He doesn’t know the source of the problems, but is starting to suspect that something has been stirred up by the work in the mines. The missing young people are a new mystery which he is baffled by.

Father Martin, town priest
STR 4, DEX 8, WIL 18, 7 HP
Driven to teach the virtues of faith.
A pacifist: he does not raise any weapon against others.Arcanum: A phial of water drawn from this silver font deals d8 Damage to undead and demonic beings. The water could instead be applied to a weapon, like a poison: the weapon’s attacks are now Enhanced for a few minutes against the aforementioned beings. The water loses its efficacy after a day has passed.Arcanum: A full day’s exposure to the smoke of this golden censer purges one disease, or restores one ability score.Arcanum: A sip from this flask of foaming royal-blue liquid bestows Armour 2 on the drinker, lasting until the next dawn. Seven mouthfuls’ worth remain.

A malevolent earth-spirit, disturbed by the mines, is abroad in the town. When it was first awoken, it intended to bring about the town’s complete destruction, tearing the earth and sending the whole place tumbling into the shadowy depths. However, a high-class woman who secretly practices dark magics has bound the spirit and prevents it from doing so. The spirit is compelled to serve the witch’s goals by helping her pull magical power from the roots of the world. Her seal on its mind is not perfect however, and the earth-spirit exacts what revenge it can by calling up terrible diseases throughout the populace.

The town’s missing young people have in common that they had recently spoken to the witch (in her public upper-class persona). They have been kidnapped and are chained up in her secret underground chambers, where she uses them to experiment with her new powers. One in particular, a shy young lady named Genevieve, has the dubious honour of being clamped to a wooden chair and forced to wear a magical armlet that protects the witch from physical harm.

The underground chambers are accessible from the mansion’s library by pulling a switch inside a hollow marble bust (a sculpture of the witch herself). The house servants have sometimes seen their mistress go into the library and then “disappear” without coming out again.

Ulthogg, spiteful earth-spirit
STR 17, DEX 5, WIL 12, 15 HP
Driven to get back to its long sleep.
Armour 2Create disease: Target must make a STR save to resist the onset of a deadly illness. If the save fails, the victim starts experiencing shakes and chills straight away. At the end of each hour, make another STR save to try and throw off the sickness: if this fails, lose d4 points from whichever ability score(s) this particular disease affects. Repeat at the end of each hour until either the illness passes (successful save) or the victim dies (an ability score reaches zero).Control rock: Cause up to a 10ft square patch of ground to move as directed: flowing aside to create a chasm; rising up sharply to smash a foe against a ceiling; quivering violently to knock things over; and so on. The ground stops moving under its own power once you finish concentrating.Move through stone: At will, the earth-spirit can move through stone and dirt as if they were insubstantial. This is its natural environment.

Constance, vain witch
STR 6, DEX 11, WIL 18, 12 HP
Driven to build influence in high society.Arcanum: By concentrating on this ivory wall mirror, you can secretly observe any being you know, and attempt to implant subtle suggestions in their mind (WIL save resists).Arcanum: A gesture from this granite rod creates a violently strong force (STR 16) that can break walls or knock foes flying. The force deals d12 Damage if used to knock someone around.Arcanum: Whoever wears the first of these chalcedony armlets takes no physical injury from attacks, nor suffers disease, nor grows physically older. All the physical changes associated with these things are instead visited upon the body of the person wearing the second armlet; the armlets sparkle while this transference is taking place. Shattering either armlet damages the mind of the other one’s wearer, whereupon they lose d6 WIL. Both armlets cease to function if either wearer dies or removes their armlet.Arcanum: Rubbing this salmon-pink unguent on lead will transform it into gold, but the effect only lasts for five minutes. There is enough unguent to “create” 50G worth of temporary gold.

Smashing the great wall mirror in the witch’s hilltop mansion will break her hold over the earth-spirit. If it has not already been placated or otherwise controlled, it will immediately start rending open a huge chasm to sink the entire town, although this will take several minutes to accomplish. If it succeeds in doing this, it will collapse the hill under the witch’s mansion in a final gesture of contempt. It will then return to the deep earth to sleep.

The earth-spirit is not very deceitful and will make no secret of its loathing for mortals (especially the witch), if the players should speak to it. It is quite open about its desire to demolish the entire town, the better to ensure that its sleep is never disturbed ever again. If offered suitable guarantees about the mines staying away from its home, it might be talked into leaving the town intact. It is unlikely to stretch to sparing the life of the witch, whom it especially hates, but it will mention the existence of the kidnapped young people if the characters have failed to locate them.

The witch made a few unusual visits to the mine works shortly before the disease outbreaks began. Neither she nor any of her servants have been affected by any of the diseases, nor does she seem afraid of falling victim to any. Ever since the start of the outbreaks, occasional minor earth tremors have been noticed by people passing near her mansion.

Among the magical texts and enciphered notes in the witch’s hidden chambers is the fifth page of the Cadian text. Many other riches and luxuries can be found in the mansion.

The fifth Angel, by my count, is the Angel of Healing named Medellon. When it takes form, it becomes an upward hand, borne aloft by four great wings of crimson feathers, and about which the air is heavy with incense.

Beware any who is a murderer, for the Angel shall surely seek that one’s destruction! When any is touched by the hand of Medellon, they fall into a deep sleep, and their life’s blood pours in streams from their eyes. But if ye have the favour of the Angel, its touch shall purge you of all disease and ailment. Truly, even the very veil of death shall be lifted if a mortal body receives the touch of the Angel.

If ye fear the Angel and its wrath (and ye may do so rightly), then anoint your forehead with your own lifeblood: then shall the Angel be unable to perceive your place. But its aura shall ye not so easily escape, and if in its presence ye do harm any of mortal flesh, ye shall be struck both deaf and blind.

Let he who studies omens watch for the approach of Medellon: the dead shall rise to full life, and their wounds shall be closed and their sicknesses healed.

Medellon, Angel of Healing
STR 20, DEX 20, WIL 20, 30 HP
Driven to destroy murderers.
Armour 1Touch of restoration: All of the touched creature’s ailments and ability score loss are cured.Touch of life: The touched corpse returns to full life, entirely cured of whatever condition killed it. A creature which died naturally of old age remains dead, however.Touch of death: The target creature must succeed on a DEX save to avoid the touch of Medellon, or else fall unconscious. After each minute, the victim can attempt a WIL save to awaken; otherwise, it remains unconscious and loses d12 STR from severe blood loss. Repeat after every minute.Limit: Cannot see any creature whose forehead has been carefully anointed with its own blood.Aura: If any creature within 100ft of the Angel harms a living mortal, the attacker is struck deaf and blind unless they pass a WIL save. This aura persists for a week after the Angel departs the mortal plane.

Sean, an aged widower who sells alchemical and herbal mixtures in the town of Jadeborough, has been sad lately since his wife Mary died. His only daughter Fiona left town many years ago, having abandoned her studies and fallen in with a bad crowd. The last he heard she was rumoured to be part of a bandit gang in the north, near Ferleigh. He doesn’t know what has become of her.

The bandits’ hideout is known to the Ferleigh villagers, although they aren’t keen on revealing it for fear of reprisals. The hideout is within a huge hollow petrified tree in the forest. It’s been furnished quite comfortably, with living space for the entire bandit gang and a private office for the bandit leader. They keep a careful lookout and will try to draw adventuring parties away from the tree.

Idrina, bandit leader
STR 11, DEX 11, WIL 13, 11 HP
Driven to rule with an iron fist.
Armour 1Poisoned crossbow: d6 damage. On critical damage, lose d6 DEX as muscle spasms from the poison wrack your body.Arcanum: This crystal headband gives the wearer the power of flight at will. They also become as light as a feather, making them vulnerable to being pushed around.Arcanum: This heart-shaped glass container contains a pale pink rose-scented perfume. Squirting a little puff of it into the air has a strange effect: the thoughts and imaginings of those nearby become illustrated through fanciful pink visions forming in the perfume mist.

The bandits’ hoard consists mostly of coins and jewellery, and is kept in a secret chamber dug out between the tree’s roots. A trapdoor under a rug in the dining-hall grants access, but one of the steps down is rigged to a slicing blade trap.

Fiona tried to leave the bandits some time ago, to settle down with a baker in Nettford and raise a family. The gang’s rule is that nobody leaves except in a box, and so she was tracked to that village and killed. This is clearly documented in the gang roster and in the leader’s diaries; those bandits that were in the gang back then also remember the event personally if questioned. Each source of information also mentions in passing that the husband and child were left alive.

In the village of Nettford, the baker and his son — Thomas and Brian, respectively — are well-known; the father is caring and hardworking, while the boy is now three years old and loves to be helpful. Thomas relates that Fiona rarely talked about her family and was too ashamed to return and visit them.

If the two can be united with Fiona’s father, Thomas will in gratitude show the characters the space under his floorboards where some of Fiona’s belongings were hidden when the bandits came to exact revenge. This cache consists of her weapon, a map with ciphered notes, and some scroll cases. Thomas can’t read any of the esoteric writings in the cases but believes them to be valuable. One of them is the fourth page of the Cadian text regarding the Gadolim.

I tell you now of the fourth of the number of the Gadolim, being Fiduciaon the Angel of Hope. In appearance it is like a great golden bowl rimmed with eyes of blazing light, and borne aloft by four alabaster wings. The bowl is filled with incense and bitter herbs, and the smoke thereof pours forth eternally.

Meet not the gaze of its eyes, O Sorcerer! Know this: that bolts of light fly from its eyes, and turn its foes to dust. Take not a greedy man before this Angel, for he shall be hated and destroyed, and ye may be destroyed also. The aura of its presence is woe also to those who are impatient or fearful, for they shall fall into a deep sleep from which there is no awakening.

But see now the limit of Fiduciaon: when any man shall attempt a task, and fail, the Angel cannot perceive his failure; verily, it is as if the attempt was not made.

Finally, let he who studies omens know this: when the Angel of Hope draws near to a place, the poor and needy shall find hidden stores of gold and jewels.

Fiduciaon, Angel of Hope
STR 20, DEX 20, WIL 20, 30 HP
Driven to destroy the greedy.
Armour 1Bolts of light: Make a DEX save. On a failure, lose d12 STR as part of your body (perhaps a hand or a leg) is blasted into dust. At zero STR, your body is completely disintegrated.Power: The Angel can create secret caches of treasure. It presciently knows who will find them, and whether or not they are deserving.Limit: If any character tries to do something and fails, the Angel is unaware that they have even tried.Aura: Within a 100ft radius, those who express feelings of impatience or cowardice must pass a WIL save or else fall into a coma. They may attempt another WIL save every day to shake the effect. The aura lasts for a week after the Angel departs this plane.

The lake known as Merus has always been the abode of certain moon-spirits who, at their whim, bestow mystical blessings on mortals. Lately the lake has been invaded by a wicked naga — a serpent with the head of a woman — which has polluted the waters with mind-twisting poison. At night, the laments of the moon-spirits can be heard for miles around.

The people of the nearby village of Perdeeco, which relies on the river Perdie bringing water from the lake, have had many of their number succumb to madness. These poor souls hide in the wilderness during the day, coming out at night to try and catch food, including humans. Beware: the victims are fast and agile despite their zombie-like mentality.

So far, many brave warriors have tried to best the naga, but her vicious trickeries have been the undoing of them all.

Mindless victim of the naga’s poison
STR 10, DEX 13, WIL 1, 4 HP
Driven to eat fresh meat.
The zombie-like state of the victims makes them immune to effects that rely on any higher brain function, such as the ability to understand language.

Hessen-Isha, naga
STR 8, DEX 12, WIL 19, 13 HP
Driven to demonstrate her superior intellect.
Armour 1Fangs: d6 Damage. On critical damage, lose d6 WIL as her venom interferes with your higher brain functions.Arcanum: This dank green mantle creates a thick, choking, cloying mist. The cloud fills a 30ft area: it Impairs ranged attacks and causes d6 Damage to those other than the user.Arcanum: When the power of this jade key is evoked, a shield of electrical energy surrounds the user. The first creature to touch the barrier takes d10 Damage, after which the arc shield collapses. The naga keeps the key on a string around her neck.Arcanum: This mother-of-pearl necklace can fire a violet ray at any object, turning it into a powerful magnet. Only one object can be affected at a time.

The moon-spirits will be effusively grateful if the naga is driven off, and will use their magic to purge the waters, and to heal both the villagers and the characters. Raising the dead, however, is beyond them: any poisoned villagers slain while in their zombie-like state remain dead.

The spirits will offer to show the characters the way to the naga’s secret hoard. This is stored in a chest submerged in the muck around one of the lake’s tiny islands: the moon-spirits, being insubstantial, cannot dig it out. Among the treasure (much of it looted by the naga from previous challengers) is the third page of the Cadian text regarding the Gadolim.

In my accounting, the third of these great Angels is the Angel of Purity whose name is Castisson. Its form is perfectly round, a disk of golden fiery crystal, about which are three pairs of hands. With the first pair it grasps two great crystal spikes like the rapier, which blaze with inner fire. With the second pair it carries two crowns, which are the crowns of the Two Wise Ones prophesied to come. And with one pair of hands it bears a cloth of white linen, anointed with aromatic oil, which is prepared for a purpose unknown to me.

In the centre of the disk is the great Eye of the Angel, which can discern the hypocrite from the honourable man: and indeed I say that the former should fly to the hills! For the Angel hates hypocrites with a holy passion, and its spikes of crystal shall pierce both the skin and the armour of the unworthy man. Yea, he shall be pierced straightly through the heart, and borne aloft upon the spike, and every part of his body shall burn with agony. Only those wearing garments of pure and unmixed fibres shall escape untouched, for such clothing cannot be pierced by the weapons of Castisson.

But its presence alone shall suffice, for the hypocrite and he who acts in an unfitting manner shall be turned into a pillar of salt by the aura of the Angel, and the salt blown by the wind. Watch for the coming of this Angel when hypocrites are found to suffer such a fate!

Castisson, Angel of Purity
STR 20, DEX 20, WIL 20, 30 HP
Driven to root out hypocrisy.
Armour 1Crystal spikes: Make a DEX save to avoid becoming impaled through the heart and lifted into the air. Such a victim loses d12 STR and is so convulsed with pain that they must make a WIL save each turn in order to take any action.Power: The Angel knows which principles people claim to espouse, even if it hasn’t directly heard them make such a claim. It can thus identify hypocrisy with ease.Limit: The Angel’s crystal spikes cannot pierce any material made of unmixed fibres (e.g. a pure cotton shirt). Other armours are useless against them, however.Aura: If anybody speaks or acts hypocritically (i.e. against their claimed principles) while in the Angel’s presence, they must make a WIL save or else begin turning into salt. Lose d6 DEX each turn as the transformation spreads, becoming complete upon reaching zero DEX. A WIL save can be attempted each turn to break the effect. The aura extends 100ft and lasts for a week after the Angel departs this plane.